Showing signs of an early spring

All of the rain and mild weather Michiana has experienced this past month has a positive side. Plants are already sprouting and trees are growing buds, right here in Michiana! There are some of these early signs of spring across our area, but further south, trees are already growing leaves. 

In a map by the National Phenology Network, the yellow shading shows us where leaves have already started developing from buds. There are already leaves in far southern Indiana. This is very early to have leaves that far north. Louisville for example is seeing leaves twenty days early.

This means that we will likely see spring showing its colors early in Michiana as well. Normall leaves sprout during the first week of April, but we could see them as early as mid-late March. Flowering trees and plants start to bloom in early May, but we could see our first flowers as early as mid to late April.